1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to ultrasonic surgical instruments. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to ultrasonic surgical instruments configured to minimize heat damage to tissue adjacent the tissue of interest prior to, during, or following an ultrasonic treatment.
2. Description of Related Art
Ultrasonic energy-powered instruments configured to cut and/or fragment tissue are known in the art. Ultrasonic instruments, typically, include a transducer that is coupled to a probe/waveguide having an active member (e.g., cutting blade, shear, hook, ball, etc.) at a distal end thereof. In use, ultrasonic energy is utilized to vibrate (e.g., at frequency usually in the range of 20 KHz to 60 KHz) the active member to treat tissue of interest.
Ultrasonic instruments may include any of a variety of probe configurations to achieve a specific surgical result. For example, the probe configuration may include an active member in the form of a cutting blade that is combined with a movable jaw configured to grasp and/or manipulate tissue. Such ultrasonic instruments are primarily used in a variety of medical procedures including open surgical procedures, luminal procedures, and endoscopic procedures.
During use, the active member, e.g., the cutting blade, may reach temperatures greater than 200° C. At such temperatures, inadvertent contact between the cutting blade and tissue may cause undesirable heat damage. Moreover, because of the relatively high thermal mass of the cutting blade (e.g., the cutting blade is formed from solid material), the cooling time of the cutting blade is relatively high, which, in turn, may increase the risk of undesirable heat damage to surrounding tissue.